What's New

  • The Grigoryan Brothers make their way to the WA Museum Boola Bardip

    11 May 2023

    An exploration of the collection of the National Museum of Australia through carefully crafted music: Grigoryan Brothers This is Us comes to WA Museum Boola Bardip.

    Incorporating all their influences from classical to jazz, the sounds of acclaimed guitar duo, Slava and Leonard Grigoryan, will echo through the hallways of Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip and WA Maritime Museum this week.   

    Performing a suite of carefully crafted pieces from their latest album, This is Us: A Musical Reflection of Australia, the pair invite listeners to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the National Museum of Australia on May 12,13 and 14.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  •  The Antikythera Mechanism on Display at WA Museum Boola Bardip, Credit WA Museum Bec Weldon

    27 Apr 2023

    New exhibition at Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip reveals secrets of world’s first mechanical computer

     
    The story behind what is believed to be the first mechanical computer and a Western Australian engineer’s six-year journey to reconstruct it, have been revealed at the Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip’s new Reconstructing the Antikythera Mechanism exhibition.
     
    Created in ancient Greece around 200 BCE, the Antikythera Mechanism is a sophisticated astronomical calculator that integrated several mathematical calculations based on observations by early astronomers from ancient cultures including the Babylonians, Egyptians, and Greeks.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Aerial photo of the three heritage cranes

    26 Apr 2023

    Victoria Quay heritage cranes to be restored, repaired and repurposed

    In a collaborative effort between Fremantle Ports and Western Australian Museum, the iconic heritage cranes that grace the western end of the Victoria Quay skyline in Fremantle will be conserved and prepared for future exhibition.

    Working closely with the Heritage Council, Fremantle Ports and Western Australian Museum have developed a conservation strategy to restore and re-erect a representation of each crane type as part of the Victoria Quay redevelopment.

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • A large group of people seated in orange and white chairs face a large projector at the front of the room with an individual standing at a podium. The image projected onto the screen displays a book titled 'Eclipse Chasers' and some smaller text

    18 Apr 2023

    Western Australian Museum Talks - How Eclipse Chasers: Past, Present and Future put a natural phenomenon into context.

    April 20, 2023, will be remembered as the day a natural phenomenon mesmerised millions when a rare hybrid solar eclipse filled the early afternoon sky.

    The start of totality will be signalled by a diamond ring haloing the syzygy of the sun, moon and earth, and onlookers will be shrouded in its celestial shadow. 

    Those who went to our recent Eclipse Chasers: Past, Present and Future talk will know the intricacies of what is happening around 383,000 km away from Earth.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Wooden wreckage of the Alex T Brown on the beach

    12 Apr 2023

    Consultation to improve protection of shipwrecks in WA waters

    Historic shipwrecks and other maritime archaeological sites stand to be better protected under the proposed changes to the 50-year-old Maritime Archaeology Act 1973 (WA).

    The Western Australian Museum (WA Museum) is reviewing the Maritime Archaeology Act 1973 (WA) to ensure WA meets its commitments under Australian law and international developments, and that all WA maritime archaeological sites and associated material receive adequate protection.

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • Expressions of Interest are now open to support one Yamatji person to participate in the WA Museum's Emerging Curators Program.

    4 Apr 2023

    Expression of Interest: Western Australian Museum and Yamatji Aboriginal Corporation's Emerging Curators Program partnership

    Expressions of interest now open 

    Western Australian Museum is proud to partner with Bundi Yamatji Aboriginal Corporation on a new opportunity to support one Yamatji person to participate in the Museum's Emerging Curators Program. The program, which has been running since 2011, is supported by the National Museum of Australia and is designed to help prospective or emerging cultural practitioners gain experience in the many different aspects of museum work.  


    About the program

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • A digital rendering of a large prehistoric shark-like create with its jaws open, hunting a great white shark which appears small in comparrison, in an ocean setting

    31 Mar 2023

    Giant marine reptiles rule the WA Maritime Museum

    Millions of years ago, while dinosaurs ruled the land, ferocious reptiles over 20 metres long hunted and ruled the sea.

    Sea Monsters: Prehistoric Ocean Predators exhibition opens at WA Maritime Museum tomorrow, Saturday 1 April, and is set to scare and amaze visitors with its life-sized casts from real specimens and fossils never-before-seen in WA.

    Sea Monsters features more than 70 exhibits and tells the fascinating story of these once land-dwelling creatures that adapted to the sea.

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    News
    Madeleine Pengelly

  • 3 Mar 2023

    New at the Museum - Artist in Focus

    In partnership with Sohan Ariel Hayes Studio and the Aboriginal Art Centre Hub WA, we are excited to launch Artist in Focus; a deeply enriched series of short films celebrating Aboriginal art and storytelling.

    Artist in Focus is now screening at the WA Museum Boola Bardip in the Perth Cultural Centre, and on the long ribbon screen on Francis Street. 

    A year in the making, the four 15-minute short films showcase WA Aboriginal Artists to the wider community through the lens of independent filmmaking and storytelling.

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    News
    Madeleine Pengelly

  • Curator of Molluscs at the WA Museum Dr Lisa Kirkendale

    17 Feb 2023

    Western Australian Museum scientists take part in discovery of new freshwater mussel species

     

    Genetic techniques have helped uncover a new threatened species of freshwater mussel in southern Western Australia and redefine the range of existing species.

    Published in Nature Scientific Reports, a collaboration with researchers from Griffith University, the Western Australian Museum, the University of Western Australia and the University of Nottingham (UK), has formally described a new species of freshwater mussel and two subspecies from southern coastal Western Australia.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Expression of Interest: Western Australian Museum Aboriginal Advisory Committee

    17 Jan 2023

    Expression of Interest: Western Australian Museum Aboriginal Advisory Committee

    The Western Australian Museum is now seeking expressions of interest from Western Australian Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples to join the Aboriginal Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee was established over 30 years ago and plays a significant role in developing policy and practice across all the Museum’s sites. 


    About the role

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • HMAS Ovens at WA Maritime Museum

    6 Jan 2023

    WA Maritime Museum’s submarine HMAS Ovens make-over to begin

    The Western Australian Museum’s much-loved HMAS Ovens submarine is about to begin its face lift and make-over, which will include the repair and repainting of the hull surface to return the vessel to its former glory.

    Ovens will close temporarily on 9th January to allow staff and contractors time to prepare the submarine for works.

    The former navy submarine is a popular exhibit at the WA Maritime Museum. However, the external hull and paintwork require urgent treatment to ensure the submarine’s future as a key part of WA’s naval history.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • 2023 Season Launch

    19 Dec 2022

    WA Museum 2023 season launch

    We are fast approaching the end of 2022, and while it has been a year of great things for Western Australian Museum, we are excited about what is up ahead in 2023 and we can't wait to share it with you.

    Over the past 12 months, we have welcomed more than one million visitors through our doors across the state. Our teams have provided over 500 programs, events, and activities, and hosted 56 temporary exhibitions across our seven unique WA Museum sites.

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    News
    Katherine Jeffries

  • Director of Engagement WA Museum Boola Bardip Jason Fair, Director of Exhibitions and Touring at ACMI Chris Harris, Culture and the Arts Minister David Templeman and Chief Executive Office WA Museum Alec Coles.

    15 Dec 2022

    Come and fall down the rabbit hole, and into Wonderland

    Upend your expectations and reward your curiosity at the playful and highly immersive Wonderland exhibition, now on at the WA Museum Boola Bardip.

    Wonderland celebrates the screen history of Lewis Carroll’s timeless stories – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Gnomes Wonderland light up mushroom.

    8 Dec 2022

    WA Museum Christmas gift guide

    If you’re strapped for Christmas gift ideas, the Western Australian Museum has you covered. With gift cards, brand new upcoming exhibitions and tours, or even something special from the Museums eclectic retail store, you will find something for everyone here.

    Here are our top five Christmas gift ideas to celebrate the holidays with the WA Museum. 


    WA Museum Store 

    Monday - Sunday | 9.30am - 5pm

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • The WA Maritime Museum under construction in 2001.

    8 Dec 2022

    WA Maritime Museum celebrates 20th anniversary with live music and extended opening hours

    WA Maritime Museum will celebrate 20 years of history, heritage, and exhibitions this Saturday, December 10, with a free family-friendly event and extended opening hours.

    Located along Walyalup’s stunning harbourside, WA Maritime Museum was officially opened to the public on December 1, 2002, by the former Premier of WA Dr Geoff Gallop.

    The opening was marked by a spectacular fly-past by Hawk 127 fighters from the Royal Australian Air Force 79 Squadron and Dr Gallop said it was one of the most imaginative facilities ever built by a State Government.

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    Article
    Kasper Johansen

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